Apparatus for sealing paper or like bottles or containers



Aug. 27, 1935. H WARE 2,012,364

APPARATUS FOR SEALING PAPER OR LIKE BOTTLES OR CONTAINERS Filed Oct. 21,1.931 6 Sheets-Sheet l ANZN Q Au 27, 1935. H. M. WARE 2,012,364

APPARATUS FOR SEALING PAPER OH LIKE BOTTLES OR CONTAINERS Filed Oct. 21,1931 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 By: 0 W W H. M. WARE Aug, 7, W35.

APPARATUS FOR SEALING PAPER OR LIKE BOTTLES 0R CONTAINERS Filed Oct. 21,1931 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 Aug. 27, 1935. H M WARE 2,012,364

APPARATUS FOR SEALING PAPER OR LIKE BOTTLES OR CONTAINERS Filed Oct. 21,1931 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 W. VZ/M Aug. 27, 1935. M4 WARE 2,012,364

APPARATUS FOR SEALING PAPER OR LIKE B OT TLES OR CONTAINERS Filed Oct.21, 1931 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Aug. 27, 1935 I v UNITED s ArEsPATENT OFFICE 2,012,36i l v APPARATUS FOR- SEBLING PAPER OR LIKE BOTTLESOR CONTAINERS Herbert Maclean Ware, Northwood, Middlesex,

England v i Application October 21, 19:1, sew-1N5. In Great BritainOctober all, 1930 a I e Claims; (Cl; new

This invention relates to apparatusforsealing tion of thecontainer isthen folded inwardly paper or like bottles or containers by inserting aand downwardly over the flange of the cap and flanged cap or dmc withinthe open end or ends pressure applied to the parts, i. e. the end poroithe container body. The flanged sealing caps tion of the body of thecontainer, the turned are placed within the open ends of the containdownportion thereof and the flange of the sealb ers with the disc or centreportion thereof dising cap which is positioned between these two posedinnermost and with the flange in contact parts of theconiaincr soas tocomplete the seal. with the inner periphery of the container.Alternatively, the above "process may be re- The invention has for itsobject to provide imversed and a portion or the flange of the sealingproved apparatus for closing the ends of contain cap turned outwardlyand downwardly so as to m ers in the above manner and with this objectembracethe end of the wall of the containers in view the inventionconsists in the novelfea- The pressure employedwin the sealing processtures of construction and combination hereinmay be applied from withinor outside the con-3 after described, illustratedand claimed. tainer orin both directions.

5 In the accompanying drawings: Apparatusfor carrying out thesealingopera- 5 Figure 1 is a side elevation of the upper part tion inconnection with the sealing of milk or of one form of machine accordingto the inven-- other liquid containers and as illustrated in tion; 1 thedrawings comprises a base I having pillars I Figure 2 is a sectionalfront elevation ofrthe rigidly securedthereto a head 3 rigidly securedupper part of this machine taken on the line to the pillars and a table4 rotatably mounted on 20 P--P of Figure l; v one of the pillars andprovided with any con- Figure 3 is a plan view of this machine; venientnumber of apertures 5, in the example Figure 4 is a front elevation ofthe lower part here illustrated four apertures, housing sheaths of thismachine; l 6, which hold the containers during the sealing Figure 5 is asectional side elevation of the processes.- The sheaths 6 are made ofthin 5 lower part of this machine taken on the line springy sheet metal,for the purpose later to be QQ of Figure 4; p v described, toiconform tothe shape of the con- Figures 6 to 10 show diagrammaticallysuccestainers and are attached to carriers 1 slidably sive stages in theprocess of sealing a carton, mounted in bushes 8 fixed within theapertures and l a v 5. whichbushes Bare chamfered at their upper 30Figures 11 to 13 are sections through the joint portions wherenecessaryto continue the sloping between the lid of a carton and the bodythereof, profile of the container. during successive stages in thesealing process. Bellcranlr levers 9 pivotally mounted on a table Incarrying the invention into effect in one con-o bearing member ill haveeach one arm forked venient manner as applied by way of example to tosurround the sheaths 6 and provided with slots 35:

sealing the end of a container, such as may be H engaging with pins 12secured to the carrier made from paper, cardboard or other flexible ma-1, while the other arm carries a roller I 3 enterial and may be waxed orotherwise proofed gaging in acam groove H formed in the cam and adaptedto contain foodstuffs or it other armember l5which isrigidly secured toa pillar 2.

g, ticles, solid or liquid, such as milk, a flanged seal- Thearrangement is such that when the table is ing cap or disc is insertedin the open end of the rotated each roller 13 passes successively over acontainer body and a portion of the end of the part of the groove I4which deviates outwardly latter is turned down over the flange of theseal from a circular outline at which point, therefore, ll'lg cap andthe parts of the container at this the bell crank lever will be operatedand the point are firmly pressed togetherso as to comsheaths movedvertically upwards. 45

plete the seal. g The table is rotatably supported by a ball bear- Whenthe flanged sealing cap is first placed in ing 16 and is provided withequally spaced index position within the open end of the container a.holes l1 (Figures 4 and 5) corresponding to the portion of this end ofthe latter projects beyond numberof aperturesi and an index pin l8 slid-.no the end of the flange of the cap (the latter beably mounted in oneof the pillars 2 is arranged log inserted with its flange pointingoutwardly to engage with these holes.

relatively to the interior of the container). The Each sheath 6 isformed with a llpped openfi ns i h n p d i h ly gainst h W ll of turel9.disposed above aclrcular tray 20 wherethe container while the latteris supportedwithby any liquid which is spilt into the sheath may in asuitable die or casing. The projecting porbe collected and suitablydrained away. The 55 table 4 is provided with a gutter 2| and drain pipe22 for the same purpose.

It should be pointed out here that this machine is intended to sealcontainers which are closed at one end. and are sealed at the other end,after the container has been filled with the required liquid. a

One or both of the bottom corners of the sheath may be cut off, whicharrangement, besides providing a drain, also has the advantage ofavoiding damage to the corners of the container when this is inserted. II It is found that during the sealing process later to be described theflanged lidacts like a piston when being inserted into the container,compressing somewhat the air therein. This causes a slight expansion ofthe container sides and it is the purpose of the previously-mentionedspringy construction of the sheaths to allow this to take place freely.

The index holes I? and pin l8 are so disposed that each aperture 5 maybe located'immediately below and coaxial with the lid fianging andsealing mechanism;

The fianging mechanism is carried 'on a base member 23 (Figures 1 and 2)secured to the two pillars 2.- and having vertically upstanding guides.24 forminga magazine to contain a pile of circular lid disc's(constituting the sealing caps or discs above'referred to) secured to acover plate 25 bolted thereto. The under surface of the cover plate 25issp'aced somewhatfrom the surface of the bas'e member by washers heldbetween the two surfaces an d -in this space a feeding quadrant 26 ofthin sheet metal is arranged to oscillate in ahoriz'ontal plane about apivot 2! (Figure"3 by means presently to be described; The feeding"quadrant has one edge formed with a semicircular profile adapted toengage with the edge of' a lid discQ When inoperative, it rests inplaces it in 'position above anaperture 29 in the base'memberand'coaxial therewith. It is then returned to its inoperativeposition and the pile of discs, which meanwhile has been suppo rted on abackwardly extending po rtion thereof, now descendsby the distance ofone discs thickness so that the next disc is in feeding position. Aweight is preferably placed at the of the pile toas sist in the feedingprocess.

Flanging is now effected the descentof a composite plunger whichcomprises a bottom punch member 3i! (Figure 2)., a retaining member 3!,a top punch member 32 and a rubberor other resilient ring 33 includedbetween the' retaining member Stand the top punch member 32. The centreportion-of .the-disc-is driven down by the bottom punch memberfiil intoa-guide bush 34 mounted in the base member 23 while; its edges areturned up andfianged by theedge of the said bush M, Somewhat beforeythe'bottom punch member 38 makes conta'ctwith the disc; axpres sure ring 35is released-and;being'urged'down- Wardly by spring" pressure, pressesthe periphery of the disc against the surface of the'base mem' ber 23.This pressure is continued throughout the'fianging process andservestosecure a'satisfactory flange by effecting an even distribution of thecreases that occur in fianging. The process up to this point isillustrated diagrammatically in Figure 6 where the lid disc is indicatedby x and a container which has been previously in serted into the tablebush 8 and is in position for scaling is indicated by y.

The flanged disc as shown by chain dotted lines in Figure 6 is nowplaced by further descent of the composite plunger already referred toin the mouth of the container y located in the table 4 immediatelybeneath the guide bush, the amount of the descent being so regulatedthat the sides of .the container may extend a substantial distance abovethe top of the flange, the open end of the container extending above theend of the bush 8.

' With the bottom punch member 30 remaining in its lowered position, thetop punch member 32 is now caused to move downwards a further smalldistance, thereby compressing the rubber ring between the said two punchmembers and causing it'to expand radially. The flange of the lid" andthe side of the container are thus squeezed tightly together between-thesaid rubber ring and the inside of the bush 8.

' Simultaneously with the application of this squeezing pressure asleeve 36 (Figure 2) is moved downwards, whereby aperipherally disposedseries *of folding fingers 3i,'p-ivotal1y mounted on thebase "member 23and engaging with grooves 38 in the sleeveiafi by rollers 35, are swungin wards so that shoes it carried thereby engage with the upstandingwall of the container y folding it inwards-over the back of the toppunch member 32 as'shown diagrammatically in Figure 7. 1 By this meansa'crease is formed around the container wall, preferably level with topof the flange on the lid disc.

The folder fingers are now withdrawn and the top punch member 32,together with the retaining member 3! and the rubber ring 33, raisedclear of the container, the bottom punch member 38 still remaining inposition (see Figure 8) The rubber ring retaining member BI is slidablymounted in the top punch member 32 but is only permitted a limitedmovement therein.

The ascent of the top; punch member 32 straightens out the turned-overportion of the container wall, but such portion is turned over againwith the top punch member in its raised position by a further operationof the folding fingers 31, this stage 'of the, operation being shown inFigure 8.

Finally the fingers 3'! being withdrawn, the top punch member is causedto descend again, and, engaging with the inturned container wall, foldsit completely over the disc flange and again squeezes the parts togetherby compression of the rubber ring; this stage is illustrateddiagrammatically in Figures 9 and 11. A slight upward movement of thetop punch member then releases the sealing pressure, whereupon thecomposite plunger is withdrawn from the container.

The mechanism, by which these movements of the punch mechanism areeffected, is contained in the head 3 (Figures 1 and 2) and comprises acam shaft i! mounted in bearings 12 and driven through a pinion 43 andwheel id from a driving wheel 45, which latter wheel may be turned byh'and'by means of a handle at or by a belt forming around its rim. Thecam shaft 4! carries four cams 42', E8, 49 and operatingrespectively'through suitable connecting means, the top punch member 32,the folding fingers 31,

\ mounted on the said. rocking shaft 1!.

the bottom punch member 30 and the feeding quadrant 26.

The cams ll and lil engage with rollers 5| carried on similar levers 52which are each pivotally connected at one end to the head 3 by links 53,springsli i being provided to urge the rollers into contact with thecams. The other ends of the levers 52 are pivotally connected by pins55, one by means of a flange 56 to a sliding sleeve 1 and the other toaplunger 58 slidably mounted within the said sleeve. Thesleeve 51 passesthrough a bush 58 in the head 3 and is connected by a cap nut 59 toanother sleeve til, to which a crosshead 6!, arranged to slide up anddown the pillars 2, is secured. Uponthe end of this sleeve 58 the bottompunch member 30 is mounted. The plunger 5% is resiliently connected fordownward movements to another plunger #52 through the-medium of a spring83, a stop collar ti l being provided to ensure a positive connectionfor upward movements. The

said plun er 62 (Figure l) is connected to the top punch member 32 by apin 65 which passes transversely through plunger and punch member andthrough elongated holes in the sleeve 6d.

The cam it is arranged to depress the lever 52 until the flange 5%carried by the sleeve 51 meets a stop formed by a boss formed in thehead 3 to carry the bush 58*. In order to prevent strain or damage tothe mechanism resulting from slight inaccuracies in assembly of theparts, the link 53 is arranged to contract resiliently, be ingpreferably constructed of two parts arranged to slide one within theother, a strong spring being provided to prevent such'movement exceptunder severe stress.

Rods ('36, secured at their lower ends to the pressure ring 3st, extendupwards through holes, in which they are free to slide, formed in thecrosshead Bl and are provided with stop nuts El and compression springs68. When the crosshead 65 rises with the sleeve El etc. to the top ofits stroke it engages the said stop nuts and by means of the rod ti:lifts the pressure ring clear of the base member as previouslydescribed. On the descent of the crosshead the springs 59 are free tourge the rods 66 and pressure ring 35 downwards. r

In order to withstand'the endwise thrust of the earn 58 on thelevertiil, tending to rotate the sleeve til about its the flange 56 ispreferably provided with an extension which slides up and down in atubular guide secured to the head 3, thus preventing any movement of thelever 52 in an endwise direction and consequent rotation of the sleeveli'l.

The cam 55 operates the folding fingers throng the medium of a roller 68carried by a lever 10 pivotally mounted on the head 3 and a rockingshaft H rotatably mounted in the said head, which shaft connected to thelever 'lfl by a connecting rod 72 and a lever '53 secured tothe shaftand is connected to the sleeve as by a pair of rods "i i coupled totheother levers T5 also Compression springs l5 encircle the rods M andnormally maintain the sleeve 36 in its upper position.

The cam 5E3 operates the feeding quadrant 26' through the medium of aroller l1 carried by a lever l3 pivotally mounted on the head 3, aconnecting rod 5% coupling the lever 18 to a bell crank'ilG and afurther ball-ended connecting rod (not shown) by which the said bellcrank 80 is coupled to the feeding quadrant so as to'oscilthe feedingquadrant being limited by a stop, a resilient connection of the kindpreviously described in relation to the cam Q9 and its associatedmechanism is preferably embodied in the quadrant operating mechanism.Instead of employing a ball-ended connecting rod to transmitthemo-vement's of the bell crank 88 to the feeding quadrant, the bellcrank or its equivalent may be formed with bevel teeth engaging otherbevel teeth formed on the feeding quadrant.

A suitable spring is provided to keep the roller H in engagement withthe cam 58.

The earns 41, 43, 49 and 50 are so shaped and disposed relatively to oneanother as to impart the above-described movements in their correctsequence.

The drive to the cam shaft 4! is transmitted thereto from the spur wheelit through a clutch mechanism which comprises a key or dog radiallyslidable in a bore 8! inth e cam shaft M and urged outwards by a spring.When in its normal or outer position, the said key engages in a keywayformed in the hub of the spur wheel 44 thereby clutching the latter tothe cam shaft 4 l. A rocking spindle 82, rotatably carried in a bearing83 secured to the head 3, is provided with two adjacently disposedinclined ramps or plates 86, 85', either of which may engage with aninclinedramp 85 formed onthe aforesaid key," thereby forcing it radiallyinwards against its controlling spring and disengaging the spurwheel 44from the cam shaft M. Theramp 85 is, for a purpose presently to bedescribed, somewhat displaced along the spindle S2 relatively to theadjacent ramp 8d, the disposition being such that'the inclined portionof the ramp 85 commences in a position roughly level with thetermination of the ramp 84. The rocking spindle is operatively connectedto the index pin [8 througha lever ill'secured to the said spindle, aconnecting rod $3 and the cranked end Elli of a. further rocking spindleBil rotatably mounted onthe base member 23 and provided with a bellcrank lever 9 5. One arm of the said bell crank lever is operativelycoupled to the index pin 53, while the other is connected by a rod 92 toa foot pedal carried on the lower part of the base I. A spring 93,encircling the rocking spindle 32 and preferably assisted by anotherspring or springs associatedwith the aforesaidfo'ot pedal, maintains themechanism late'it in a horizontal'plane. The movement of in the positionillustrated in 'thedrawings, in

which the index pin i8 is in engagement with the index holes ill and theramp M is set to engage the key ramp 3t}.

With the mechanism in the position shown, the camshaft ll willalways bedisengaged, after one revolution thereof, from the spur wheel 44 by theinteraction of'the ramps 8t and 85. On depression of the aforesaid footpedal by which the index pin is is withdrawn so that the table 4 may bemanually rotated, the rocking spindle 82 is tilted to the right (inFigure 2) thus moving the ramp fit out of the way of the ramp B5. Thekey is now free momentarilyto clutch the cam shaft'and spur wheeltogether, but is immediately caused to disengage them again after asmall rotation of the cam shaft, by the engagement of the ramp $6withthe second ramp 85 carried by the rocking spindle $2. The cam shaft4! is thus restrained from rotation untilthe rocking spindle, by tiltingto the left, consequent on the re-entry of the index pin IS into a holel'l, moves the ramp 85 clear of the key ramp 86. The key, being thenfree to move 1 radially outwards.

clutches. the cam shaft 4I to the spur wheel 44 for a further revolutionof the former, until it is again forced inwards to effect disconnectionof the cam shaft and spur wheel, by the engagement of the key ramp 86with the ramp 84 now in its original position.

The object of this arrangement, i. e. the provision of the extra ramp85, is to ensure that the cam shaft can only be operated to causedescent of the punch members when a table orifice 5 is in correctposition beneath them, this condition being indicated by the entry ofthe index pin I8 into an index hole I'I.

Those parts of the mechanism which come into contact with the containerrim or the lid flange during the fianging and sealing operations arepreferably heated in order to soften the wax with which these membersare coated, preferably by the circulation of hot water. For this purposea heater 94 may be provided, having electrical or other suitable heatingmeans embodied therewith, from which hot'water flows by thethermo-siphon principle to a header tank 95 by way of a pipe 90. Fromthence it passes through a partly flexible pipe 91 to a channel 98formed within the pressure ring 35 and thence by a pipe 99'to athree-way fitting I00. From the said fitting it is conducted by a pipeml to a channel I02 formed within the top punch member 32 or by a pipeI03 to a channel I04 formed within the hub of the table 4. The waterreturns to the heater from the top punch member by'a partly flexiblepipe I05 and from the table hub by a passage I06 formed in the pillar 2and by a pipe I01. The three-way fitting referred to above is soarranged that hot water can be delivered alternatively to the punch orto the table or to the punch and table together. A thermometer I08 isprovided to indicate the temperature of the table hub. It should benoted that the bushes 8 surrounding the containers receive their heat byconduction from the channel I04 by conduction through the body of thetable. Vent pipes I09 are provided to allow the escape of air from theheating system.

The operation of the machine in the sealing of filled cartons is asfollows:

It will be assumed that the driving wheel 45 is being continuouslyrotated either by hand or' power (though such continuous rotation is notessential) and that the table is located by the index pin IS in one ofits four'positions, and, further, that the magazine is filled withsuitable lid discs.

Referring to Figure 3, an empty container is inserted into a sheath inthe position denoted by A. The foot pedal is then depressed to withdrawthe index pin and to allow the table to be turned by hand until thecontainer is in the position denoted by B, when the table is locked byreleasing the foot pedal and the container is filled by any convenientmeans. The table is again released by depression of the foot pedal andturned to bring the container into the sealing position denoted by C.Upon its location in this position by the entry of the index pin I8 intoa -hole I 7 after the release of the foot pedal, the

clutch mechanism engages the cam shaft with the rotating spur wheel 44and the fianging and sealing process commences. This process, aspreviously described, lasts through one revolution of the cam shaftafter which, this latter is automatically disengaged and stopped by theinteraction of the ramps 84 and 86 and comprises: the placing of theblank in position; hanging and inserting it into the mouth of thecontainer; the application of preliminary sealing pressure andpreliminary folding; withdrawal of the top punch member and subsequentdescent of the same to effect final folding application of final sealingpressure and withdrawal of the punches.

It may be found desirable to supplement the seal thus effected, which isillustrated in Figure 11, by the introduction and sealing of a secondlid :13 within that already sealed in position. This is effected by asecond depression and release of the foot pedal whereby the cam shaftmakes a further revolution to flange and insert a lid (13', as shown inFigures 10 and 12, and to seal it finally in position, as shown inFigure 13. The second lid m may conveniently be formed of plain,unproofed material for which purpose the discs are piled alternatelyplain and waxed in the magazine. Alternatively the second lid may beformed of waxed material. Lastly, the foot pedal is depressed again andthe table turned to bring the filled and sealed container into theposition denoted by D, when, having been automatically lifted by theejector mechanism previously described, it is removed from the machine.

It must be understood that, in normal operation, four containers arebeing dealt with simultaneously by the machine, three being respectivelyinserted at A, filled at B and removed at D while the fourth is beingsealed at C.

With the form of machine described, it is necessary, after the fi-angingand sealing of the first lid in position, to wait while the cam shaftmakes a complete revolution before the clutch can be reengaged to effectthe fianging and sealing of the second lid. It is proposed to obviatethis pause and generally to improve the action of the machine byproviding an alternative form of clutch mechanism. This mechanismcomprises an auxiliary shaft, slidably and rotatably mounted in bearingssecured to the head 3, driven from the cam shaft speed at half the speedthereof by a pinion and spur Wheel and carrying a disc having a pair oframps formed thereon similarly to the ramps 84 and previously described.Suitable levers engaging with collars formed on the said auxiliary shaftenable this to be moved endwise against the action of a spring by thedepression of the operating foot pedal. This endwise movement enablesthe said ramp to pass another stationary ramp, operatively connectedwith a clutch mechanism, in a manner analogous to the present mechanism.In this case, however, the clutch comprises a coned friction discslidably keyed to the cam shaft ll and engaging a conical frictionsurface in the spur wheel 44, while the operative connection takes theform of a rod extending through an axial bore in the cam shaft andcoupled at one end to the said friction disc and at the other to a bellcrank carrying the said stationary ramp.

By the use of this arrangement of a half speed shaft in combination witha friction clutch, the machine trips itself out of action after tworevolutions of the cam shaft instead of one as at prescut and is furthercapable of re-initiating operation immediately the foot pedal isreleased.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the abovedescribed details but is capable of being variously modified to suit anyconditions or practical requirements it may be desired to fulfil.

Further, the machine is not limited to the sealing ofthe ends ofcontainers of the kind above referred to and illustrated but isapplicable to other forms of containers such as may be adapted tocontain solids and powders and where the filling operation is to beperformed before the seal is applied, as would be the case in acontainer which is only open at one end, the filling means may beembodied with the sealing machine, if desired.

What is claimed is,

1. An apparatus for sealing the end of a container, comprising a holderfor the container, means for forcing a cap disc into the container andsimultaneously forming a peripheral. flange thereon so as to completethe cap, means subsequently operable for bending the upper part of thecontainer wall over the cap, and means operable for forcing thebent-over portion of the container into sealing engagement with theflange of the cap.

2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 comprising means for feeding thecap disc over the open end of the container, and means adapted to bearupon the periphery of the cap as it is forced into the container.

3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the means for forcing thecap disc into the container comprise a movable punch having a resilientradially expansible member engageable with the cap flange.

4. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means for bending overthe upper portion of the container wall consists of a plurality ofpivotally mounted fingers.

5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the means for insertingthe sealing cap into the open end of the container is also operable toinsert another flange cap into the container and in sealing engagementwith the first cap inserted into the container.

6. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein upper end of the containerupon a surface of the plunger, said plunger including means for bendingthe bent-over portion of the container wall into sealing engagement withthe flange of the cap disc and the plunger being operable first to presstogether the flange of the cap and the upper portion of the wall of thecontainer and then to press together the flange and container wallportion.

9. An apparatus for sealing the end of a container, comprising a holderfor the container, a plunger for forcing a cap disc into the end of thecontainer and forming a flange around the periphery of the disc, thesaid plunger comprising an outer portion adapted, to bear upon the discpart of the cap and an inner portion which is movable relatively to thelower portion, means for bending the end portion of the container onto asurface of the inner plunger portion and means for moving the innerplunger portion away from the outer plunger portion, so that the lattermay remain within the flanged cap, and then returning the inner plungerportion in order to fold the previously bent container end portionagainst the flange of the closure cap.

HERBERT MACLEAN WARE.

